Wrexham ’s search for a new manager began in earnest last week following the sacking of Gary Mills, the club sitting 15th in the National League after a raft of uninspiring performances.

Expectations of success will always be high at the Racecourse, especially while the club is languishing in the fifth tier – many fans still failing to accept that the club has plummeted to as low as their current standing.

It has been an apparent and damning factor of Wrexham’s play this season, a lack of bravery or mental strength, and has often haunted the Dragons on their travels as they have struggled when under pressure and all but capitulated after going behind.

And never more so was it obvious than in Saturday’s FA Cup fourth qualifying round clash at the Zeeco Stadium as they took on Evo-Stik Northern Premier League First Division South outfit Stamford AFC.

A blistering start which saw Wrexham go ahead after just six minutes was followed by a period of sustained possession without really hurting the Daniels, Wrexham guilty of playing in front of the home side’s defence and not really creating any chances.

Wrexham players are dejected at the final whistle of their 2-0 loss at Woking (Image: Jim Roberts)

And with that saw Stamford grow in confidence, while Wrexham simply retreated in theirs, the Daniels enjoying more of the ball and looking the most likely to score.

That their levellers came from the penalty spot is down to some fine saves from Shwan Jalal and some last ditch defence from the back four, but after Lee Beeson equalised following Hamza Bencherif’s lunging tackle on Ryan Robbins, there only ever looked to be one winner of this tie.

Thomas’s fellow club legend Joey Jones summed it up after the game in Lincolnshire, saying you lose confidence by the mile, but merely gain it by the inch.

This is a squad shorn of any confidence, perhaps even a squad simply going through the motions, and that is something whoever comes in will need to address first and foremost.

Lack of goals

Jordan White has been missed (Image: Jim Roberts)

Statistics don’t lie and it is very obvious to see the route of Wrexham’s immediate problems – and that is a lack of goals.

Only North Ferriby United in 22nd place have scored less than the Dragons in the National League, while Southport – bottom of the table with just two wins and three draws to their name – have scored the same as Wrexham in the league.

Just 11 goals in 15 games (14 goals in 17 if you include Shaun Harrad’s brace and Jordan Evans’s strike in both FA Cup ties) is simply not good enough.

Part of that can be attributed to a mystery illness that has seen summer marque signing Jordan White laid low since pre-season. White was the great Wrexham goal hope this term, a player that Gary Mills had coveted and chased for some time in the hope of bringing him to the Racecourse from Livingston.

He was doing well in pre-season before being struck down by an unforeseen blood condition that was so much more serious than first thought.

But while White was the big goal threat and indeed the pressure on the forward to ‘hit the ground running’ on his return is in danger of becoming a mill-stone round his neck, Mills brought in replacements, much to the delight of the fans at the time to manage the situation.

That they haven’t fired is a huge worry, and while the most optimistic of fans will suggest the Dragons are merely nine points off the top five, perhaps the more pessimistic (or indeed realistic) will look and say they are only nine points above the bottom four relegation places.

But one thing is for sure, whoever does take over will need to find someway for the Dragons to find their goalscoring touch.

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Get the fans back on side

It was obvious by the end that Mills has simply lost the good graces of the Racecourse faithful.

Boos rang out – unnecessarily – following the opening day 0-0 draw with Dover Athletic, while again boos followed as Wrexham drew 0-0 at home with Eastleigh a fortnight later.

And then bizarrely boos yet again rang down from the stands as the Dragons claimed a 1-0 win over Sutton United in September, albeit with a huge smash and grab raid that left the newly promoted side feeling more than hard done by.

Add to that the boos that echoed down from a paltry crowd on Tuesday night, while Kern Miller’s effort to give Stamford a 2-0 lead was followed by chants of ‘what a load of rubbish’ and it only highlights the growing rift between fans and squad.

Mills, hailed as the ‘Millsiah’ on his arrival by many, was the fans first choice to take over from Kevin Wilkin, and brought a fast, free flowing style of football to the Racecourse not seen in many a season.

But clearly the boos on the opening day clearly showed a level of discontent among the Dragons faithful, perhaps some supporters had decided even before the game they were going to show their displeasure at the management, maybe the huge squad cull in the summer fuelling their ire.

Wrexham is a fan owned club, there has been huge amounts of work carried out behind the scenes to ensure it is a fan owned club that is gaining more and more success off the pitch in a bid to safeguard the future of the Dragons.

So it is vital that whoever it at the helm, whoever sits in the hot-seat, has the complete and total support of the fans.

Trim the fat

Wrexham’s lowest ever finish in the football pyramid is 17th – secured in the 2013-14 season.

That season saw Andy Morrell step down as manager to be succeeded by Kevin Wilkin, with the Dragons finishing 41 points behind champions Luton Town in the standings.

Looking at the National League just 15 games in and Wrexham are already in danger of creating another unwanted record of finishing even lower.

Tuesday night’s shocking loss to a Stamford side who sit three tiers below in the pyramid only served to highlight that there are a number of players who are simply not up to the task, whether that be mentally or in ability.

Dipping into the loan market may be necessary for the new man, because certain ones in the squad at the moment – good enough or not – are simply not performing to the level required.

Steady the ship

A fairly obvious statement to make, but in honesty Wrexham are teetering at a crucial point in the season.

Like stated the Dragons are nine points off the top five, but also nine points off the bottom four, and while many will look and suggest that a club of the size and stature of Wrexham are far too big to go down, stranger things have happened, simply look to Edgely Park and fall from grace Stockport County have suffered in recent years.

It is a combination largely of all of the above for the new manager to address. Finding a winning formula may not be the instant reward, but simply finding a way of halting the demise and turning the Dragons back into a defence force and a side hard to beat should be priority number one for whoever takes the reins.